After the Epilogue
by Ravenwood240
Summary: 300 years after Harry and Hermione wasted their lives, fate makes another try to save the Wizard World.


_Five generations after Harry's time, the Wizard world is still the same. Biased, divided by bloodlines and money. In short it hasn't changed at all. The Ministry is still corrupt and the old money people are still charge._

_A person from another world is chosen to try and fix the things that went wrong after Harry defeated Voldemort._

_**After the Epilogue**_

_**Ravenwood240**_

_**Chapter the Only**_

_**OoOoOoO Two entities, somewhere. OoOoOoO**_

"Couldn't you have found a different way to change the world?"

The being that had been addressed ignored the question to examine its surroundings. The being already knew that it was not as it had been. First, it didn't have a body of any type, just a pulsating mass of light.

He looked around, trying to find any solid point of reference in the shimmering opalescent mists that surrounded the two of them. Failing in that he looked at the other mass of light patiently waiting for his answer. Like him, it was a pulsating mass of lights of every colour and hue. It was slightly bigger than he was, but what truly made it different was the sense of power that radiated from it like heat from a fire.

He tried to shrug as he had done in life and a ripple passed through his lights. "Maybe, but that was the only thing I could think of that would wake the people up to what was going on and how they were being led down a path that would end in slave collars."

"Oh, you did that. Even now the people are rioting, and some few are waking up to the power that is the people. I had hoped, however, that you would be there to lead this fight. Without you, there are five possible leaders. Three of them will be good for the revolution, trying to live up to the example that you gave them. The other two..." The being seemed to hesitate. "Are just like the leaders you have fought against, looking only for personal power and profit. If one of them takes control, the revolution will be a series of revolutions, until the people get a good leader in place, one that is just and strong enough to hold that power in the midst of turmoil and death."

"You had hoped? Who are you exactly?"

The bigger mass rippled in amusement. "I am what you might call an embodiment of Fate."

"Huh. Wait..." The smaller mass thought for a minute. "You said that you'd hoped I would lead this fight, but if you're Fate, shouldn't it have happened, you know, the whole 'fated to happen' thing?"

The other mass rippled and shook in amusement. "I'm afraid that you don't yet speak any language that we can discuss the nuances of the interactions of the Powers with mortals." Fate saw the confusion in the smaller mass and sighed. "Look at it like this. On your planet alone, you had the God and Goddess, Fate, Chaos, The Dark One and all their minions trying to sway events in the direction they wanted it to go, correct?"

The smaller orb nodded. "Now, on top of that, you have several million mortals, all of whom have free will and the ability to choose from literally thousands of paths in their lives. Nothing, not me, nor Chaos nor the Dark One can possibly keep track of every variable in that equation."

"What about the God? He's omnipotent."

"Here is where the language gets in the way. Omnipotent is a null word, meaning nothing. According to the belief structure you have, The God and Goddess are the physical expressions on the Universe and can do absolutely anything, right? They are Omnipotent?"

"Yes, that's the way the priest explained it to me."

"So, can one of them create a rock so large that neither of them can move it?"

"Of course... wait a minute."

"That's my point. Omnipotent is a null word when you use it to say that a being can do absolutely anything, because every being has limits. Because you are mortal, with more limits than other beings, you have a harder time trying to describe their limits. They seem to have no limits that you can find, so you create a word like Omnipotent. It does not accurately describe anything though."

"So, what language can you describe you or the Gods in?"

"Not one any mortal can learn to speak while they are bound by mortality. It's one of the limits of mortality, that the true nature of the higher beings cannot be truly known."

The larger mass sighed. "While I would like to continue this discussion, I have a reason for interrupting your travel to the next plane."

"I was curious as to where I was going and what I was doing here. I was taught that I would go to my next place on my death, but this doesn't look like the Netherlands or Paradise to me."

"I don't know which plane you were bound for. I can make some guesses, based on what I know of your life and actions but only your God and the Dark One know for sure. This place is a nexus, a point from which you can enter any reality or plane. I have permission from the Powers of your reality to talk to you and make you an offer before you continue on. If you accept my offer, you'll go to a place you have never heard of, to do something for me. If not, you will continue on to the reward you earned in life."

The smaller mass hesitated, thinking. "What is this offer?"

"In order to understand it, I have to explain something to you that are a bit outside of your experience. You know of your reality of course, and your religion teaches you of two more realities, the Netherlands where evil people go to be redeemed after death and Paradise, where a good soul goes to enjoy the rewards of virtue, correct?"

After the smaller light agreed the other light continued. "There are other realities, some very much like yours, some different and some so very different that you couldn't comprehend them in a thousand years of study."

"Now, each reality has its own Powers, specific to that reality and those powers have the most power in that reality. Besides those Beings, there are a few of us that make sure that all of the realities don't interfere with other realities, that every reality continues on a course that was set down at the beginning of time. I am one of those Beings, as are Destiny and some few others."

The light flickered in resignation. "None of us have the Ultimate power that you ascribe to your God. There are simply far too many things going on for any one beings to track every possible event and that is why I need you. There is one reality that is close to falling off of its course and only a desperate action on our part might bring it back to where it should be."

"Let me tell you about Wizards and magic and a man named Harry Potter."

Some time later the smaller light looked at the bigger light. "So, this Harry defeated the Voldemort person and lived out his life. I don't understand what when wrong."

"Neither do we. Harry Potter was much like you, with a determination to save people who needed help and we thought that after his victory he would continue to fight for the rights of the people that were being abused. With his power and Hermione Granger's intelligence, they should have set the Wizard world on a new course, bringing the Wizards to a point where they could start on the next step of their evolution. After Voldemort's death though, both of them did things that we simply cannot understand. Harry simply did nothing, allowing the world to pass on by, not doing anything to correct the imbalances that had allowed him to be abused in the first place."

"Hermione became just another housewife, allowing the intelligence that could have changed the world to go to waste, used for absolutely nothing."

"Without those two, the other people of their age just slid back into the way things had always been done. And that is where things stand now. If something does not change in this time, right now, the Wizards will die out, unable to change and move on with the rest of their world and magic will truly be just a myth, a tale from the early days of the world."

The lights floated in silence for a bit until the smaller light spoke. "What is it that you want of me?"

"You have a gift, to know what is right and see through the many guises of evil and apathy. We are asking you to become one of these wizards and try to make things right, to set them on a course that will allow them to evolve with the rest of their world."

"And how am I supposed to do this?"

"For the first part of his life, Harry Potter did what was right, not what was easy, until he had killed Voldemort. After that he did what was easy, going with the flow. Those of us that are sending you to do this hope that you will avoid that and continue to do what is right."

"What will I have, to work this magic? Will I know what I have to do, or have anything to help me?"

"You will not remember any of this, until you pass on from the new life. We can give you a few things, make you capable of doing the job as we did with Harry Potter, but you have free will and we cannot do anything to change that. Like Harry Potter, you will have all the pieces to do what needs to be done, but we cannot force you to act."

"How do you know I will do anything?"

"Why did you sacrifice your life in the reality you came from?"

"Because someone had to do something to stop the evil. No one else was doing anything, so I did it."

"That is why we are sending you, if you agree. Harry Potter had that very same attitude in the beginning, but he lost it somewhere along the way. We are hoping that whatever happened to him will not happen to you."

The older light focused on the smaller light. "I will not say that it will be easy, nor will I make any claim that you will succeed. It will not be easy to overcome the inertia of the Wizard world, nor are there any guarantees that you will win. But if you don't try, the Wizards will die out as surely as any other species that doesn't evolve with the times."

The light considered this. "So, you're asking me to take on a mission with no knowledge of it, with no way to know what I'm supposed to do, how to do it or any way to know if I succeed."

"That's about it. We have discussed this, the other Powers and I, and you are the only person that has a good chance of saving these people before it's too late."

"You set me up, didn't you? You know that I could no more walk away now than I could have ignored the way things were going on my world."

"It was one of the reasons for picking you. We cannot force you to do this. You have already earned your passage to the next plane. Only with your agreement can we disrupt that passage."

"So, I can move on to whatever reward I have earned, but in doing so, I doom a people to die out. Does that cover it?"

"Yes, that sums it up nicely."

"Why are you so determined to save these people? If they can't change with the world, shouldn't they just be allowed to pass on?"

Fate sighed again. "First, it's our mission to do what we can to save them. Something went wrong with Harry Potter, so we have to try again, as many times as it takes to save them, or until there is no chance to save them. Second, they can speed up the evolution of their world, if they change. Without the active participation of this group, that world will have added centuries of pain and dark times before they move on to the next level of their evolution."

"You say that I will have the ability to succeed. What does that mean, exactly?"

"We cannot directly interfere with any sentient being with free will. We can however, make sure that you are born with the tools to do the job. Your soul is your own, but the body you will have will be strong enough in magic to complete your mission. At the very least, you will be a powerful wizard, capable of great feats of magic, just as Harry was, and as Dumbledore was before him. Depending on Chance and Luck, you may have other abilities."

The smaller light blinked. "You say that like Chance and Luck are beings like you."

"Of course they are. There are dozens of Beings, most of whom work toward a mutual goal. Some of them are neutral, like Luck and Chance, acting on some criteria that those of us partial to order don't understand. There are also those that work for Chaos. In your world, it would be considered a battle between Virtue and Selfishness, in other worlds, like the one we are talking about, it's called the battle of Good and Evil and it has other names in still other worlds. Basically, it comes down to what is good for the people of a world versus what is not."

"I take it that my actions in my world helped the side of Virtue."

The other sphere rippled in humour again. "You'll never go back there, so I can tell you this. Your actions kicked them onto another path. Even if one of those bad leaders takes power first, your actions have brought forward their next evolutionary step by thirty or forty thousand years."

The other stilled in astonishment. "But how?"

"Think of your life as a pebble. Left alone, it does nothing. But if that pebble is rolled down a hill and strikes another pebble just right, it can start an avalanche. You were that first pebble. It will take a couple of centuries to see all the changes that your life and death made in your world. Even then, the avalanche will not be done. Your small change will lead to bigger changes, which will spread, until no one can foresee all the things that will happen."

"And you hope that I will be able to do the same thing in this new world."

"You are the best possibility, yes. There are a couple of others that might be able to do what needs to be done, but their chances of winning are less than half of yours."

The smaller light thought for a time. "Alright, I'll do it."

Fate rippled in the sphere's version of a smile. "I was hoping you'd say that. I'll see you again, one way or another. May Luck be with you."

There was a shimmering flash and Fate was alone for a minute. Two more lights appeared and moved closer to Fate.

"Are you certain about this?"

Fate looked at the light that had spoken. "Of course not. You, of all Beings should know just how often we've had to prune entire branches of mortals. But, that mortal is their best hope for continuing."

The light Fate had addressed was still. "Chaos will not be standing still on this one. Have we any idea what Chaos will do?"

The third light rippled in amusement. "Nothing, right now. Chaos had a run of bad luck in a reality far from here and will be spending the next ten years or so fixing it."

Fate looked at the Being that personified Luck. "And just what did Chaos do to earn that much bad luck?"

"I can't say, but it was perfectly legal under the rules we live by." Luck looked at the last light. "I think you have some plans for that Mortal, above and beyond what Fate is working on. Care to share your plans?"

The Being that Luck was watching shrugged. "Four times in the past I have tried to get the Wizards of this world to move their magic to the next level. Merlin and Morgana could have done it, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger could have done it, just to name my last two attempts. I will give them one more chance to make more of their magic than what it is, to advance it to the next level. That mortal will be have a chance to create greater magics than any one on their world has known. If they take the right course, they will enter a period of magical advancement similar to the Industrial revolution every culture that doesn't use magic for everything goes through."

Fate and Luck considered that. "And if they don't take that path?"

Magic looked at them. "On any world where magic and science work, there comes a time when one of them overwhelms the other or they achieve balance. If the Wizards do not start changing, science will take this world over and all the magic of their world will fade away and be gone forever."

The three Beings were silent as they considered one small globe in one reality where everything had come to a head and the future of the world hinged on one mortal soul.

_**OoOoOoO Hogwarts, in the year 2308. OoOoOoO**_

Headmaster Weasley looked up as his Assistant entered with the Admissions book. "Professor Lovegood, is something wrong?"

"Not exactly, Professor Weasley. I just noted something a bit strange for this year. I sent out all the Hogwarts letters last week, to every name in the Book, just as we have always done."

The Headmaster nodded. "Yes, that is as it should be. So?"

Professor Lovegood turned the book towards the Headmaster. "I was looking at the new births section, making notes for the Improper Use of Magic office when I noticed this." She tapped the last name on the list. "This name was not there last week."

Headmaster Weasley looked at the name. "Alexander James Perks. I know the family name, the Perks have been around for generations. Are you certain that you just didn't remember this name?"

"Headmaster, the last name on the list I filled out was Selena Luna Lovegood, my granddaughter and namesake. Do you really think I wouldn't remember that?"

Headmaster Fredrick Weasley looked at the list again, noting that the name just above Alexander Perks was indeed Selena Luna Lovegood. "That would stand out, wouldn't it?" He considered this anomaly for a few minutes. "Has this ever happened before?"

Professor Lovegood nodded. "It is recorded in 'Hogwarts, A History'. It has happened three times before, usually when a family got a child from overseas somewhere that has magic. Should I see if the Perks have had a recent addition to their family?"

Headmaster Weasley considered the matter for a few minutes. "I think not. The Book has accepted him and we cannot gainsay that. Send him his letter." He thought for a bit more. "The Perks are one of those families that don't have a good reputation, aren't they?"

Professor Lovegood frowned. "They are. They don't have any problems marrying Muggleborn and they treat every wizard as if they are as good as those of us that have long histories in the wizard world."

Headmaster Weasley absently stroked his beard as he thought about this. "Maybe, since he is new to them and our world, this is a chance for us to show him the light, before they make him over in their image. We should take special care of this boy when he comes to Hogwarts."

Professor Lovegood nodded. "I'll take care of it, Headmaster."

_A/N: Just a thought that came to me as I was trying to work on my NaNoWriMo offering. Harry and Hermione could have been an amazing force in the Wizard world after they brought Voldemort down, but according to the Epilogue JKR did, they did nothing at all, allowing the Wizard world to continue as it had been doing before Voldemort._

_How anyone could believe that the Harry and Hermione of the first six books would allow the Wizard world to continue in its path of bias and prejudices is beyond me, but that's what they did, according to JKR._

_In this world, the Wizards have continued to stagnate, refusing to change and remaining as they were before Voldemort and Harry disrupted them for a few years. Three hundred years after Harry defeated Voldemort, Hogwarts and the Wizard world haven't changed at all, except that there are more old money families with slightly larger families, thanks to the Weasleys. With the Weasley boys that survived in Harry's time all having more than one child and Ginny bearing multiple sons for Harry, the next generation almost had no choice but to marry a Weasley or Potter, and within three generations, there's a Weasley or two in every family tree, to say nothing of the Potters._

_As they gain in fortune and respectability though, the Weasley fall into the trap of Pureblood thinking, becoming just another Pureblood line. They may not think of Muggleborns and Half-Bloods as less than human yet, but they are considered to be second class citizens. Muggles are nothing, just an obstacle to be avoided._

_The Potters are much the same._

_Now, someone has to try and fix the things that should have been fixed years before this._

_This is just an idea... It may never go any further than this, so if any of you want to pick it up all I ask is that you make sure I get a copy of the finished work for the archives here._

_Raven_


End file.
